Drying Herbs
In a previous post I discussed drying some of my Basil and
Oregano in the oven. My good friend John
Treacy then loaned me his jerky maker/dehydrator to try out. He has made beef jerky, dried strawberries,
and dried tomatoes, but never done herbs.
I will be trying it out soon, but I did notice some interesting this
about temperatures.
When drying the basil and oregano in the oven, the
instructions I downloaded from www.preservingyourhavest.com
said to set your oven to its lowest temperature and leave the basil in for 2 –
4 hours and the oregano for 30 minutes, then check every 15. The lowest my oven
goes is 170 degrees; the basil took about 1 hour 45 minutes; the oregano 45
minutes. The lowest temperature the
dehydrator goes is 95 degrees and its recommended time for basil is 20-24 hours
and for oregano 15-18 hours. I’ll see
how it goes.
Bistro Lunch Concludes
We had 12 attendees for this class on Sunday afternoon,
October 30. The main course, pictured
above, featured Bistro Steak with Lemon Basil Garlic Aioli, Baked Pommes
Frites, and a quick Ratatouille. We also
made a warm Goat cheese and Pear Salad and a Strawberry Clafoutis for
dessert. Although we had a very
ambitious menu with 6 separate items, the class managed their time well and had
time to sit and enjoy the meal at the end.
Cooking Basics 101
Begins November 6
This 3 session class begins this Sunday afternoon at 1:00 PM
at the Plum Center in Springfield, and continues for the next 2 Sunday afternoons,
November 13 and 20. Each class will feature
a salad, a main course with vegetable and a dessert. For the first 2 weeks we will be making a no
bake dessert, and in the last class we will bake a loaf cake. Each week we will use a different cooking
method for the main course – the first week will be stove top; the second in
the oven; and in the third we will start on the stove top and finish in the
oven.
In our first session this Sunday we will make a Caprese
Salad, Pan Fried Chicken Italiano with Blanched asparagus, and a Blueberry Ricotta
Parfait.
Reminder – Instagam
Follow me on Instagram at #senseichef. I look forward to your comments on my posts,
culinary and otherwise.
Upcoming Classes
Here are my classes for the rest of the fall term. The winter catalogue will be out soon.
November 6, 13, 20 – Sunday Afternoons – Cooking Basics 101
– Plum Center
December 6, 13, 20 – Tuesday Evenings – Quick Weeknight
Dinners – Plum Center
To register for this class, or any ACE cooking classes,
please go to:
http://www.fcps.edu/is/ace/specialinterest.shtml and scroll
down to the Culinary section
While there, be sure to check out the other culinary courses
offered by ACE’s excellent chef instructors.
Till next time, keep cooking.
Contact Chef Kevin at:
KJBrady@fcps.edu
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